[kiriberty]

Tariffs are bad for the economy. Foreign countries are ditching US partnerships, contracts. Less travelers are coming to US. Wow I wonder when will we open our eye. In the middle of all these, US is ditching its allies and planning to invade sovereign countries (Greenland).

[theflyinghorse]

Tariffs, forcing capital into 7 very large companies instead of small startups, wage suppression through weird offshoring and immigration schemes so on and so forth. There are seemingly unending number of issues that all contribute to the same outcome we're seeing today.

[CSSer]

It seems strange not to mention ICE or even treatment of transgender individuals if you mention travelers. We've effectively taken out round-the-clock advertisements saying "If you're not a fire-breathing, straight WASP, tread lightly". Normally, out of a sense of egalitarianism for even conservatives, I would tag on "even though it's not true", but I fear the evidence simply doesn't bear this out anymore.

We're searching the phones of visiting punk kids. We're cruelly punishing Canadian residents for clerical errors by unnecessarily detaining them. We've told our own citizens that it's reasonable to interrogate them at any moment for looking brown or black. We told an entire class of people they simply do not exist as they or even their family, friends, and coworkers understand them. Finally, we're deporting people who, although they've been here unlawfully for years, have also contributed a great deal. I've left out the most egregious examples to remain focused on the system.

All of this is happening as a backdrop while droves of US-born and immigrant citizens alike lose their jobs and are unable to find new ones. To say the irony is palpable is an understatement.

[colechristensen]

Foreign adversaries are getting exactly what they wanted, their manipulation of US politics has been extremely successful.

[dj_gitmo]

We did this to ourselves. Let’s not make excuses.

[verdverm]

those adversaries would not have been able to crank the volume if the conditions had not existed

[heresie-dabord]

Ad slop and AI slop have served their purpose in destroying people's confidence in information.

But if there were a healthy public discourse, there would be little acceptance of the slop economy, absurd lies, and repulsive rhetoric.

[epistasis]

It's clear that we did this to ourselves towards the very ends of both foreign and domestic people that want to end the current order.

From Russia to Peter Thiel in the Epstein files, they all want the US to undergo an even worse Brexit.

[a_ba]

would you care to clarify on this? are you saying the current administration has been corrupted by foreign adverseries? or has the administration been outsmarted by foreign adverseries?

[colechristensen]

Russia has been working on Trump for decades, he's an amusing idiot. They manipulated him, people around him, the electorate, and the election to engineer the situation where this fool is in the presidency. They have hard power over him (compromising pictures, information, loans, etc) and soft power over him (he admires strongmen autocrats).

The rise of the alt-right took weaknesses in the right and left and amplified them to engineer the situation where there was a populist takeover of the Republican party. Epstein met moot. 4chan took a turn from being the asshole of the internet that was the original source of the concept of memes and a lot of other internet culture and turned it political and the conspiracies and thought processes jumped from 4chan to your dimwitted fox news loving uncle.

All of this is taking and molding stupidity and weaknesses in order to achieve outcomes: international conflict and weakening America on the world stage with both its allies and adversaries. Not outright commanded by foreigners but shaped by them taking advantages of the post-9/11 fear and general stupidity and anti-intellectualism and fear of immigration.

[a_ba]

I see - thanks for taking the time by writing this up and adding a little more texture to the debate

[lawn]

Trump is rumored to be heavily influenced by Russia and supposedly goes under the codename "Krasnov".

[postsantum]

There were photos of him kissing the kremlin wall.. just saying..

[nosianu]

The Heritage Foundation, billionaires and a lot of other people who want this are all US citizens, and they planned for this for a long time. Let's not blame others for something entirely US-homegrown.

As an ex East German, I wonder how much of it is the disappearance of the competing model. Some of the old communists actually warned about this. Don't get me wrong, I participated in the demonstrations back then, socialism had clearly failed as a society and economically. Does not make that particular idea wrong though. The powerful want to go back, take back the power they think is theirs, consciously or as a reflex.

Note that Europe, Germany in particular, are far from the "socialist" examples some, or many, Americans think, welfare state and all that. Fact is, when it comes to rigid stratification of society, who rules, who owns, Germany is far on the side of capital, and according to a study the few thousand people at the very top are from the same 4% of the population almost exclusively.

What is happening in the US is happening in more places. Here in Germany we too now have more and more attacks on social systems. It's never the fault of inept leadership, no the people must work more and longer! They have zero new ideas. That is the only one they can think of. I am not really exaggerating, even the representatives of our powerful "Mittelstand" (much of Germany's industry) heavily criticized especially the conservative CDU in the government only a few days ago, publicly.

I see no reason to try to blame the Chinese, or the Russians, or anyone. All of it comes from within, and not just in the US.

[worldsavior]

Like if the US needs alies. Europe is currently begging for the US.

[nicbou]

The US needs allies, and at the moment it's antagonizing all of them simultaneously. Europe is currently reorganising around the US, as are others.

Collaboration benefited all.